The Cardiff Blues has said it is exploring a number of “exciting” options for a new home away from Cardiff Arms Park.

That was after it said it had been unable to reach agreement with its landlord, Cardiff Athletic Club, over a new 150-year lease with development rights to redevelop the city centre site, with a new stadium at its heart.

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However, if they are to remain in the centre of Cardiff, there are not that many options.

But here are a few.

The SSE Swalec Stadium

SSE Swalec Stadium (Image: Getty Images Europe)

There are examples around the world, like in New Zealand with Eden Park and the Westpac Stadium, where cricket and rugby are played at the same ground.

The test match cricket venue SSE Swalec Stadium has the capacity for around 15,000 spectators, with excellent corporate hospitality and catering facilities.

But the challenge would be getting a rugby pitch into the existing playing surface, which might have to involve moving one of the main stands, or the use of temporary seating, to create a rugby stadium feel.

There is precedent - the Gabba in Brisbane hosts both cricket and Aussie Rules football, while international rugby and cricket are played at Eden Park in Auckland, among many others.

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There is also some overlap between the ending of the rugby season in May and the start of Glamorgan’s cricket season in April ‑ that also extends into September which means it coincides with the start of the rugby season.

The fixture crossover could be addressed by Glamorgan playing games at the start and end of its season at St Helen's in Swansea, or the Blues playing elsewhere for a few games.

So, the biggest challenge would how to re-configure the stadium that ensures a great spectator experience for both sports, assuming of course that Glamorgan Cricket would want to do a deal with the Blues. At the moment the stands are all largely uncovered - perfect for a balmy summer's evening, but not great on a wet January night.

A big tick in the box is that the cricket stadium is just several hundred yards away from the Blues’ existing Cardiff Arms Park home.

Sport Wales

Sport Wales

Just across from the SSE Swalec Stadium there is an artificial pitch used for both hockey and football and an adjoining separate grass rugby pitch, which is used by the WRU.

Available land at the back of the SSE Swalec Stadium, could also potentially be incorporated to create a new rugby stadium, which could utilise the corporate hospitality facilities at the cricket ground.

But there is also potential for Sport Wales to move its HQ and indoor sporting complex next the SSE Swalec Stadium, to a new location.

This would open up a huge site, along with the car parking and existing pitches, for a new build stadium project. Such a site would be ideal for a new hotel too. The freehold is owned by Cardiff Council.

Dumballs Road

Dumballs Road (Image: Google Earth)

A site, which runs alongside the River Taff just south of Cardiff Central train station at Dumballs Road, provides one of the biggest development opportunities in the whole of the city. Its footprint extends to 40 acres.

The majority of the land is owned by property investment firm Vastint. Cardiff Council is keen to see it provide potentially up to 2,000 new homes. However, there could still potentially be room too for a new rugby stadium and other commercial developments.

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Motorpoint Arena

Motorpoint Arena (Image: Matthew Horwood)

Lots of big ifs and buts here, but let’s assume current operator of the Motorpoint Arena, in Live Nation, strike a deal with Cardiff Council to operate the proposed 15,000 seater indoor arena at Atlantic Wharf. That would bring the existing 7,500 seater indoor arena into play for redevelopment.

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The freehold is owned by Cardiff Council. But it is not a huge site. So, realistically to accommodate a stadium, it would need the adjoining buildings and surface car park, owned by property firm Rapport, to be included.

Outside the city centre

Cardiff City Stadium

Cardiff City Stadium (Image: Huw Evans Picture Agency)

Well, this could be very much a case of once bitten twice shy.

The previous arrangement, which saw the Blues being a tenant of the football club didn’t end well. For the life of me I could never understand why the board of the Blues agreed to sign up to a 20-year lease without a break clause.

It cost them £1m to break the lease to return to Cardiff Arms Park, but if it wasn't for the charm offensive negotiating style of Blues chief executive Richard Holland, it could have been a much higher exit bill.

At the time, in 2012, there was still 17-years to run on the lease at a rent running into several hundred thousand pounds.

But for the Blues to make that work again, they need to have much bigger crowds. But even if Cardiff City wanted the Blues back, it is very unlikely to be happen.

But just across the road from the stadium is an athletics track, would could be redeveloped to provide a new 15,000 seater rugby stadium.

Hensol

Sam Warburton at the Vale Resort (Image: PA)

There are already excellent sport training facilities and pitches, used by both the WRU,the Blues and Cardiff City at the Vale Resort at Hensol in the Vale of Glamorgan.

So, it could make sense to have a playing stadium located there too.

But while close to the M4, from a public transport perspective it is not the easiest of place to get to.

Nantgarw

There is plenty of development land at Nantgarw around the main campus of the University of South Wales and that of Coleg y Cymoedd, where there is already top class sporting facilities.

Politically, it could be a very smart move too in a bid to generate a new support base in the Valleys for the Blues - although perhaps under a new name in recognition of any new Valleys located home.

And electrification of the Valley Lines could see a new Metro station at Nantgarw, which would make it far easier for fans from Cardiff to get to any new stadium with the promise of turn-up-and-go services.

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The Blues could seek to develop a new ground in a joint venture with the university and college, as well as building other retail and leisure developments around it.

And there are plenty of land opportunities for a new stadium in Pontypridd too.

Staying at the Arms Park

Cardiff Arms Park (Image: Huw Evans Agency)

The current relationship between the Blues and Cardiff Athletic Club is not in a good place. But there is no reason why both parties cannot get around the table again to thrash out a new long-term lease deal.

But the reality is, based on the current offer of £8m to the athletic club on the securing of planning consent for the redevelopment of the Arms Park, would there be enough developer profit to satisfy the first requirement of a new stadium for the Blues and Cardiff RFC?

A new stadium could cost around £30m, and with planning and design costs and the £8m to Cardiff Athletic Club, that means a scheme would need to generate a margin of at least £40m.

And Cardiff Council is unlikely to approve the most profitable form of development around any new stadium, with high rise residential apartments.

Perhaps, the reality is that there would only be enough profit to say build one new stand at the existing ground.

But the Arms Park site, and potentially the Holiday Inn adjoining it too, should really form part of a more joined up and bigger regeneration scheme in the centre of Cardiff.

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The WRU, under its former chief executive Roger Lewis, had worked up plans for 240,000 sq ft of commercial developments on land it owns around the Westgate Street entrance to the Principality Stadium. The scheme was being called Westgate Plaza.

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And the footprint of a wider scheme could potentially move across Westgate Street to include the current eyesore multi-storey car park, a property recently acquired by US owned property investment fund Global Mutual.

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But to achieve this a working party would need to be established involving all stakeholders: Cardiff Athletic Club, the Blues, WRU, Cardiff Council, property developers and even the Welsh Government, to see if a masterplan could be agreed, which provides for a new 15,000 capacity rugby stadium.